When Fr. Renè Astruc, S.J. was a young man
growing up in France, he
clearly knew he had a religious
vocation—not to a particular order, but
to a people, the Native people of Alaska.
Through discernment, Fr. Astruc came
to understand that his vocation lay with
the Jesuits, and from the time he was Fr. Renè Astruc 50 years ago
ordained to now, as he faces his death,
Fr. Astruc continues to minister to
Alaskan Natives.

Scammon Bay is a community of 450 people, with a Catholic church, a
Covenant church, three stores, a school, a post office, a health clinic, a
village gym and government offices.

All over the Yukon-Kuskokwim
Delta where Fr. Astruc has served for 50
years, when Native people see another
Jesuit—in a village, on an airplane, in an
airport, at the Native health care center
in Bethel—they ask about Fr. Renè.

When Fr. Renè came to Alaska he
followed in the footsteps of a great
tradition of French missionary Jesuits,
men whose hearts were on fire with the
love of the Lord, who had an eagerness
to share His love and His grace with
people who had never heard of Him. Fr.
Astruc is the last in Alaska of that
particular long black line.

... death is ... the most
natural thing to do
and there really is
nothing to fear.

In June of 2001, Fr. Astruc learned
he had kidney cancer. The news was
devastating. But after an evening spent
in prayer with his superior, Fr. Mark
Hoelsken, Fr. Renè says he was granted
the grace to move forward and has not
been afraid since. Fr. Renè went to
Spokane for treatment, then in the fall,
when he was cleared for travel, he
headed back to his beloved Yukon-
Kuskokwim Delta.

Due to rapidly declining health,
however, Fr. Renè was unable to journey
farther than Anchorage, and a deathwatch began
at his hospital room. Hearing that he was
dying, so many people came to pay their
respects that a special waiting room
had to be set up. Jesuits who had worked
with him in Alaska over the years
picked up the phone, and through their
tears, told him how much they would
miss him when he was gone.

But then, he didn’t go. He didn’t die.
The doctors expected Fr. Renè to pass
on. The attending physician said a sad
goodbye before leaving on a scheduled
trip. Certainly the Jesuits who had
bought food for his wake and discussed
procuring a coffin had anticipated his
death. But Fr. Renè just didn’t think
it was his time yet. And, for whatever
reason, his one remaining kidney began
to work again.

What Fr. Renè brought to the
people who visited him in the fall, and
still brings to those who come see him
now, is peace. A quiet but steady sense that
death is just fine, that it’s the most
natural thing to do, and that there really
is nothing to fear. As a priest for 51 years,
Fr. Renè anointed many souls on their way to God.
He’s sat with grieving families and he’s learned
something about death: “I don’t think
we need to say much—just be there and
respect the moment. It’s a time they
have to go through, and we help as
much as we can. What is more important
is to attend to the witnesses of the
event. The person who is dying, in most
cases, is at peace with themselves.”
And how does one best attend to
the family?

“Well, listen to them. They need you
to be there, and to hold them. Some rely
on prayers, others on a simple presence. You get the
feel of it, and then you provide what
they need.”

So far, Fr. Renè has been mostly
free of pain, and to talk with him one
gets the impression that dying isn’t
such a bad thing: He’s thinner now and
he doesn’t have his usual appetite or
strength, but he reads novels, history,
and spiritual journals; prays and
celebrates Mass; listens to music, and
laughs with friends.

“There are no two days alike. And
the interest I find is more in the other
people who come to visit, and the people
here in the rest home. Sometimes they
will come to you, and they don’t say
much. There is a problem, and maybe
they’ll ask a question, and then they’ll
start to talk. It’s just a small village
here. There’s plenty to occupy you, and
you have a variety of people who come
to take care of you, and say a good word
now and then. I enjoy that very much.”

Editor’s Note:
As Northwest Jesuit went to print, Fr.
Renè suffered a relapse. The cancer
spread to his bones, and Fr. Renè was
placed in hospice care.

Jesuit Archives, Gonzaga Univ. Jesuit Archives, Gonzaga Univ.

Fr. Renè at a convalescent center in Anchorage.
He enjoys people wherever he is.